The Penalty Box: The blessing and curse of being an athlete
January 27, 2021 at 4:15 a.m.
The Penalty Box: The blessing and curse of being an athlete
By Roger Grossman-
curse of being an athlete
I heard it two weeks ago.
It bothered me for a few days, then I forgot about it. But the words kept coming back to me, and they hurt me.
What was it?
“Athletes are so lucky. They get everything and I’m just tired of it.”
An adult spoke those words.
Had it been a student, I would have been a lot more forgiving—they may not know better.
I never got to confront the person who uttered it. They walked off without challenge.
I regret that.
Let me redeem myself now, and when you are done reading, you tell me if athletes have it easy or not.
Let’s start at the beginning…of the day. Before some adults and most students wake up, while it is still dark outside, cross country and track runners are up, dressed and running on the streets and sidewalks of any town you choose.
Sometimes you’ll find basketball teams in the gym in those early morning hours, especially outside of their season.
The lights of the weight room are also on, and if you are close enough you can hear the clanging of metal-on-metal. It’s weight lifting time for football players—it’s underclassmen doing the work required to make themselves better, and their teams better at the same time.
There is no one out there cheering them on as they push themselves to get better and be better. It’s hard. It’s painful. There is no glory in it in the moment.
The reward, they hope, will pay off in their fourth quarter or the final set or at the finish line.
All of that, and school hasn’t even started yet.
Once the school bell rings, athletes are required to maintain a minimum grade level in each class to be able to participate in the games of their sport. If they don’t, they can’t play.
Athletes are subject to drug tests—random ones? I am totally in favor of them, and I think all students should be subject to them. Administrators and teachers have a right to know who and what they are dealing with in their school buildings and classrooms.
Oh, by the way, drugs are illegal, and so is vaping for kids—all kids, not just athletes.
Athletes fail their drug test and they can’t play in their team’s games for a certain length of time, nor should they.
In 2021, athletes have to be mindful of every move they make. They have to watch who they sit or stand by. Who they ride in a vehicle with. A cough sounds the same as a shotgun blast, and if doesn’t make them think of moving, it should. If they sit next to someone for too long, and that person tests positive, they get contact-traced and lose two weeks of their season.
For basketball players, swimmers and wrestlers this time of year, getting contact traced likely means they lose their chance at playing in their sport’s post-season tournament. It means all the off-season work, the work in your classroom, the work in practice—all down the drain.
That’s the school day.
There is a high probability that they will have something after school. Could be practice. Could be off-season conditioning. Could be weight lifting. Could be club work.
But there is something after school, often.
After their after-school-day athletics are supper, homework and bed time.
The next morning, they do it all over again.
We haven’t said anything about time spent in the training room. The physical cost to do what you enjoy is an experience that non-athletes cannot understand. Being an athlete hurts. No one tears an ACL in biology or algebra class.
We haven’t talked about the two-hour bus rides just to get to a game, and 11:45pm arrivals back at their school.
We haven’t mentioned eating cold meat sandwiches in boxed meals in those buses after games.
Yes, athletes get special treatment. Do they get public praise? You’re darn right they do.
Athletes earn what they get. They pay a price every day almost all year long for it. They forfeit personal freedoms for it. They endure physical pain for it. They risk public scorn for it. They count the cost, and it’s worth it to them.
And I will defend them, and the special treatment they get…period.
E-Editions
curse of being an athlete
I heard it two weeks ago.
It bothered me for a few days, then I forgot about it. But the words kept coming back to me, and they hurt me.
What was it?
“Athletes are so lucky. They get everything and I’m just tired of it.”
An adult spoke those words.
Had it been a student, I would have been a lot more forgiving—they may not know better.
I never got to confront the person who uttered it. They walked off without challenge.
I regret that.
Let me redeem myself now, and when you are done reading, you tell me if athletes have it easy or not.
Let’s start at the beginning…of the day. Before some adults and most students wake up, while it is still dark outside, cross country and track runners are up, dressed and running on the streets and sidewalks of any town you choose.
Sometimes you’ll find basketball teams in the gym in those early morning hours, especially outside of their season.
The lights of the weight room are also on, and if you are close enough you can hear the clanging of metal-on-metal. It’s weight lifting time for football players—it’s underclassmen doing the work required to make themselves better, and their teams better at the same time.
There is no one out there cheering them on as they push themselves to get better and be better. It’s hard. It’s painful. There is no glory in it in the moment.
The reward, they hope, will pay off in their fourth quarter or the final set or at the finish line.
All of that, and school hasn’t even started yet.
Once the school bell rings, athletes are required to maintain a minimum grade level in each class to be able to participate in the games of their sport. If they don’t, they can’t play.
Athletes are subject to drug tests—random ones? I am totally in favor of them, and I think all students should be subject to them. Administrators and teachers have a right to know who and what they are dealing with in their school buildings and classrooms.
Oh, by the way, drugs are illegal, and so is vaping for kids—all kids, not just athletes.
Athletes fail their drug test and they can’t play in their team’s games for a certain length of time, nor should they.
In 2021, athletes have to be mindful of every move they make. They have to watch who they sit or stand by. Who they ride in a vehicle with. A cough sounds the same as a shotgun blast, and if doesn’t make them think of moving, it should. If they sit next to someone for too long, and that person tests positive, they get contact-traced and lose two weeks of their season.
For basketball players, swimmers and wrestlers this time of year, getting contact traced likely means they lose their chance at playing in their sport’s post-season tournament. It means all the off-season work, the work in your classroom, the work in practice—all down the drain.
That’s the school day.
There is a high probability that they will have something after school. Could be practice. Could be off-season conditioning. Could be weight lifting. Could be club work.
But there is something after school, often.
After their after-school-day athletics are supper, homework and bed time.
The next morning, they do it all over again.
We haven’t said anything about time spent in the training room. The physical cost to do what you enjoy is an experience that non-athletes cannot understand. Being an athlete hurts. No one tears an ACL in biology or algebra class.
We haven’t talked about the two-hour bus rides just to get to a game, and 11:45pm arrivals back at their school.
We haven’t mentioned eating cold meat sandwiches in boxed meals in those buses after games.
Yes, athletes get special treatment. Do they get public praise? You’re darn right they do.
Athletes earn what they get. They pay a price every day almost all year long for it. They forfeit personal freedoms for it. They endure physical pain for it. They risk public scorn for it. They count the cost, and it’s worth it to them.
And I will defend them, and the special treatment they get…period.
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